Artificial nail and method



June 1962 M. M. LAPPE 3,037,514

ARTIFICIAL NAIL AND METHOD Filed Sept. 22. 1958 NV ENTOR.

-. Maxwell 777 Lap 0e am? eys 3,037,514 ARTIFICIAL NAIL AND METHOD Maxwell M. Lappe, 204 S. Austin Blvd., Oak Park, Ill. Filed Sept. 22, 1958, Ser. No. 762,396 4 Claims. (Cl. 132-1) This invention relates to the care of the human nail and it relates more particularly to the means and materials for fabrication of an artificial fingernail in position of use on the nail naturally formed.

In many instances, either because of deficiencies existing in the human nail naturallyformed on the finger, or because of exposures of the nail to unnatural forces or conditions, the natural nail sometimes acquires an undesirable appearance. Cracks may be formed on the surfaces due to deficiencies in composition or because of extraction of materials from the composition of the nail. Irregularities or breaks may appear because of brittleness or because of breakage resulting from impacts or abrasion. Partial or total loss of the nail may occur also by reasons of disease or injury. Instead, discolorations may be formed in the nail to detract from its appearance or the nail may fail to develop properly on the finger, or excess of the nail may be removed by biting, cutting, or the like.

In any event, it is sometimes desirable to overcome the deficiencies, blemishes or the like and to provide an attr'active nail which is of the desired dimension, shape 'and/ or color.

For this purpose, use is often made of an artificial nail which is prefabricated of a plastic material preformed to a desired shape for adherence onto the underlying natural nail and which is sometimes formulated to embody a color of the desired shade or the like. While such artificial plastic nails have found wide accceptance in the cosmetic art, certain deficiencies and difiiculties have been found to exist in their use.

In the first place, a complete set of nails must be provided for each finger of each hand and such sets must be provided in different shades since coloration after application is not effected. Thus, an inventory of a large number of nails must be maintained for each individual person for use.

In the second place, such artificial nails are relatively inflexible in use, that is, they tend to grow out with the underlying natural nail such that a spaced relationship soon develops at the base which requires removal of the nail for replacement with a new set in order to maintain a satisfactory appearance.

-In the third place, adhesion between the underlying surface of the artificial plastic nail and the top surface of the natural nail is difficult to achieve and maintain. As a result, the applied artificial nail is sometimes inadvertently removed thereby to spoil the entire set. This necessitates removal of the other nails for replacement by a new set in order to maintain uniformity in appearance.

It is desirable to provide a means embodying greater flexibility for application of artificial nails onto the fingers and it is an object of this invention to provide a method and means for achieving same.

More specifically, it is an object of this invention to provide a method for the build-up of an artificial nail in situ on the surface of a natural nail whereby good adhesion can be achieved substantially permanently to attach the artificial nail to the natural nail; whereby outgrowth of the natural nail and corresponding displacement of the artificial nail can be concealed by a touch-up process whereby it becomes unnecessary frequently to remove the applied nails for replacement; whereby the artificial nails are formed of a supply of plastic material thereby to enable duplication of color and composition without replacement of the applied nail thereby to conserve on ma- States Patent terial and effort in maintaining attractive nails on the fingers.

These and other objects and advantages of this invention will hereinafter appear and for purposes of illustration, but not of limitation, an embodiment of the invention is shown in the accompanying drawing in which- FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a finger and natural nail;

FIG. 2 is a perspective view in section of a form mold used in the practice of this invention;

FIG. 3 is a perspective view similar to that of FIG. 2 showing treatment of the surface of the form mold with a separating agent;

FIG. 4 is a perspective view similar to those of FIGS. 2 and 3 showing the further addition of the plastic onto the form mold prior to application onto the natural nail;

FIG. 5 is a perspective view similar to that of FIG. 1 showing the assembly of the form mold of FIG. 4 on the natural nail, and

FIG. 6 is a perspective view similar to those of FIGS. 1 and 5 of the artificial nail on the finger.

In accordance with the practice of this invention the surface of the original nail 10 on the end of the finger 12 is cleansed, as by means of a solvent or soap or other conventional means, to remove surface and to remove oily or the like substances naturally formed on the surface and which, if allowed to remain, might tend to minimize the.adhesion between the artificial nail and the surface of the natural nail. A form mold 14 corresponding in shape to the fingernail to be applied to the surface is treated on its underside 16 with a parting material 18 to minimize adhesion between the face 16 of the form mold 14 and the plastic applied as a coating 20 onto the treated concave surface of the form mold.

Thereafter, the composition of a plastic material capable of fluid flow and subsequent setting to a hardened state is applied as a uniform coating onto the treated side of the form mold to provide the relatively thick layer 20-. The composition is of a material which tends rapidly to set to a tough and hard but resilient product which retains the shape of the form mold but which attaches strongly onto the underlying surface of the natural nail 10. Before the plastic layer sets, and preferably while the applied composition is still adhesive and capable of plastic or fluid flow, the composite form mold as illustrated in FIG. 4 is applied onto the prepared surface of the natural nail 10 with the plastic layer 20 adjacent the nail whereby the former becomes strongly adhered to the surface of the nail to form a part thereof. As the plastic coating advancces to the set and hardened stage, it remains integrated to the surface of the nail and tends to draw away from the surface of the form mold from which it is easily parted by reason of the parting layer 18 and by reason of the shrinkage occurring in varying amounts in the plastic material as it advances to the set stage.

Thus the artificial nail developed as a coating on the formnrold is applied to the surface of the natural nail to release the form mold for subsequent use in preparing another nail for addition to or replacement of that which has previously been applied or for use in fabrication of an artificial nail on other fingers.

It will be apparent from the foregoing that the mold form may be preformed to the desired shape for use in forming the artificial nail adapted to be applied to form an integral part of the natural nail. In a preferred alternative, the mold form may be prepared with a sufficient oversize to enable the mold form to be trimmed down to a desired shape for the particular nail to be covered.

The mold form 14 is preferably fabricated of'plastic material such as polymethyl methacrylate or other polyalkyl acrylate, polystyrene, polyvinyl chloride, vinyl chloride-vinyl acetate copolymers, polyethers of polyesters,

polyamides, cellulose ethers or esters such as cellulose acetate, cellulose butyrate or the like, or other thermoplastic or thermosetting resinous or elastomeric materials. Such resinous materials may be further flexibilized by addition of plasticizing agents or the like. The form mold need not be clear or attractive since it is removed and thus does not form a part of the artificial nail. As a result, it can be formed of a filled plastic of the type described or of a metal or of a glass. It is desirable, however, that the inner concave surface 16, adapted to overlie the natural nail and provide the mold surface for the artificial nail, be relatively smooth to minimize bonding between the form mold and the applied plastic and to leave a luster or polish on the surface of the synthesized nail. It is desirable also to form the mold of thin and flexible materials which can be easily shaped and trimmed for fabrication of an oversize mold capable of being trimmed to the desired size and shape. While it is possible to provide one form mold for all of the fingers, it is more deisrable to have a form. mold for each finger to correspond to the individual shapes.

The parting agent can be any material which is either non-adherent to the form mold or to the plastic of which the artificial nail is formed. It is preferred that the parting material be incompatible and non-adherent to both of the surfaces of the form mold and the plastic. For this purpose, use can be made of an oleaginous material such as grease, mineral, vegetable or petroleum oils and the like lubricants. Use can be made of a Wax or a solution of a wax. Instead of a natural oil or wax, use can be made of artificial materials such as Carbowax (polyethylene glycol), organo-silicon fluids or waxes and the like. Cold creams, soaps, petroleum jellies or other materials containing oleaginous substances may be employed.

Where glass is used as the form mold or when other hydrophilic material is used as the form mold, or when a hydrophilic material, as represented by hydrophilic colloid (polyvinyl alcohol, gelatin, alginate, carboxymethyl cellulose, methyl cellulose and the ike), is applied as a coating onto the form mold, separation of the set plastic from the form mold can be achieved without pretreatment because the organophobic resinous materials of the synthetic nail are incompatible with the hydrophilic surface of the form mold and separation can be eased greatly by exposure to moisture, since moisture is preferentially attracted to the hydrophilic surfaces to effect separation of the plastic layer. If a hydrophilic colloid is used, the water can function further to soften or dissolve the colloid for separation.

By way of still further modification, the surface of the form mold may be treated to minimize adhesion by the application of an organo-silicon fluid or lubricant which remains on the surface rather permanently or for many cycles thereby to permit easy separation of the form mold from the plastic without pretreatment of the form mold for each application.

The parting compound, when used, can be sprayed or brushed onto the surface of the form mold.

The plastic composition applied onto the concave surface of the form mold may be formed of resinous materials characterized by setting to a film which is tough, resilient, smooth and capable of sufficient hardness to prevent scratching, marring, discoloration or the like. In order to build up the desired film thickness onto the surface of the form mold, it is desirable to formulate the plastic composition to a relatively high viscosity. This can preferably be achieved by the combination of a resinous polymer and a monomer of which the resinous polymer is formed whereby the polymer dissolves in the monomer to achieve the desired viscosity and whereby the two become compatible one with the other to form a clear and resilient film. The combination may be represented by the use of a methyl methacrylate polymer dissolved in a methyl methacrylate monomer in an amount to provide the desired viscosity. For this purpose, use may be made of from 40-80 percent of polymer dissolved in from 20-60 percent monomer, depending somewhat upon the molecular weight of the polymer. Use can also be made of larger proportions of monomer including formulation of the composition entirely of monomer. in any instance, it is desirable to make use of a catalytic agent to accelerate advancement of the resinous materials to a polymerized and set stage. For this purpose, use can be made of conventional catalysts such as the benzoyl peroxides and the like oxidizing agents. Instead of the combination of methyl methacrylate polymer and monomer, use may be made of other resinous materials formed by addition polymerization in combination with a monomer as represented by the vinyl chloridesvinyl acetate vinyl chloride copolymers. It will be understood that other resinous combinations based upon addition polymerization may be employed but it is preferred to make use of clear resins because of the attractive appearances capable of being developed. With the use of such clear resinous materials, it is possible to incorporate tinctorial agents, dyestuffs, pigments and the like to impart color to the coating composition for the development of the desired shades in the artificial fingernail. Instead, a polish can be applied to the surface. In the selection of materials, it is desirable to make use of a polymer or other resinous system embodying components incompatible with the material of the form mold and which is also incapable of attacking the material of the form mold to enable easy separation of the respective elements.

By way of modification, the synthetic resinous polymeric composition may be allowed to set on the mold form to produce an artificial nail of the desired size and shape which may subsequently be transferred onto the natural nail for bonding thereto as by an adhesive. The adhesive may be applied either to the prepared surface of the natural nail or to the surface of the formed synthetic nail. Any suitable clear adhesive may be used but it is preferred to make use of an adhesive containing the monomer of the plastic of which the artificial nail is formed or which may contain a solvent capable of wetting or softening surface portions of the artificial nail.

It will be understood that changes may be made in the details of construction, operation and in the formula tions without departing from the spirit of the invention, especially as defined in the following claims.

I claim:

1. In the method of casting and fastening an artificial nail on a finger, the steps of providing a form mold with a concave surface to correspond to the shape of the nail, treating the concave surface of the form mold to provide a non-adherent, smooth surface, coating the treated surface of the form mold with a hardenable, film forming synthetic polymeric material embodied in a composition capable of flow, placing the mold form with the applied layer downwardly onto the finger in nail position, holding the mold form onto the finger until the layer sets and becomes bonded to the natural nail of the finger to form an integral part thereof, and then separating the mold form from the layer which remains strongly bonded as an artificial nail on the finger.

2. The method as claimed in claim 1 in which the coating composition is formulated of materials which are incompatible with the materials of the form mold and nonadherent to the surfaces of the form mold.

3. In the method of casting and fastening an artificial nail on a finger, the steps of providing a form mold corresponding to the shape of the artificial nail and which has a smooth resinophobic surface, applying a thick coating of a composition containing a hardenable, film forming synthetic polymeric material onto the concave surface of the form mold, allowing the coating partially to set, pressing the form mold with the coated side onto the natural nail to effect a bonding relationship between the applied 5 coating and the natural nail, and then removing the form mold.

4. In the method of casting and fastening an artificial nail on a finger, the steps of providing a form mold corresponding in shape to the shape of the nail, providing a non-adherent smooth surface on the concave surface of the mold form, applying a composition containing a hardenaole, film forming synthetic polymeric material as a continuous layer on the concave surface of the mold form, allowing the polymeric material to be advanced to a hardened state, applying an adhesive onto one of the sur- References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,443,537 Aberbach Dec. 31, 1946 2,761,443 Parker Sept. 4-, 1956 2,764,166 Bogoslowsky Sept. 25, 1956 

1. IN THE METHOD OF CASTING AND FASTENING AN ARTIFICAL NAIL ON A FINGER, THE STEPS OF PROVIDING A FORM MOLD WITH A CONCAVE SURFACE TO CORRESPOND TO THE SHAPE OF THE NAIL, TREATING THE CONCAVE SURFACE OF THE FORM MOLD TO PROVIDED A NON-ADHERENT, SMOOTH SURFACE, COATING THE TREATED SURFACE OF THE FORM MOLD WITH A HARDENABLE, FILM FORMING SYNTHETIC POLYMERIC MATERIAL EMBODIED IN A COMPOSITION CAPABLE OF FLOW, MOLD WITH A HARDENABLE, FILM FORMING LAYER DOWNWARDLY ONTO THE FINGER INNAIL POSITION, HOLDING THE MOLD FORM ONTO THE FINGER UNTIL THE LAYER SETS AND BECOMES BONDED TO THE NATURAL NAIL OF THE FINGER TO FORM AN INTEGRAL PART THEREOF, AND THEN SEPARATING THE MOLD FORM FROM THE LAYER WHICH REMAINS STRONGLY BONDED AS AN ARTIFICIAL NAIL ON THE FINGER. 